Sleeper, Giant

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David John Scarborough11 August - 6 October 2018

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Co-produced with:Adham Faramawy, Aoife Mullan, Ariane Schick, Claire Davies, Coco Crampton, Colette Griffin, George Chinnery, Harry Freestone, Ian Jackson, John Plowman, Mateus Domingos, Sarah Roberts, Shauna McKeon, Tom Sewell

When you think of public sculpture, what do you think of? This strange meeting point between a private mind and a public space. History, identity, community made physical. So often when we come across public sculpture we feel indifferent. This exhibition and book were brought together to build new relations with the artwork around us. The sculptures that stand alone in our town centres, which mark and frame our motorway landscapes. Art that belongs to us the public.

'Sleeper, Giant' started with an invitation from Modern Painters, New Decorators to artists from across the UK to write texts which created new emotional, intellectual or physical connections to pieces of public sculpture. In return we received poems, essays and short stories as diverse as the monuments that litter our land. But they are united by this common goal. To engage.

As well as designing a book the Modern Painters, New Decorators team led by David John Scarborough made prints, sculptures, fabrics and installations that combined together to respond to and present the texts in new forms. In line with the wider aims of the project, we also put on family workshops alongside two sculpture trails across the university campus and town centre, led by Dave Bell from LU Arts and Kev Ryan from Charnwood Arts. As part of August’s ‘Loughborough by the Sea’ festival, Modern Painters, New Decorators in collaboration with Bearded Squirrel invited budding young artists from across the community to join us in celebrating this iconic sculpture as we competed to give the Sock Man a makeover in new colours and patterns. 'Sleeper, Giant' was supported by generous donations from the general public.